Wound drainage device

ABSTRACT

A portable, wound drainage, suction pump for extracting body fluids from wounds has a substantially rigid vessel, a top plate carrying an actuator member, a resilient diaphragm disposed in the vessel and defining with the lower portion of the vessel an expansible chamber, and an actuating plate on the diaphragm adapted to be urged downwardly by an applied force on the actuator member to move the diaphragm downwardly and evacuate air from the expansible chamber. Upon removal of the applied force, the diaphragm tends to return to its original position due to the resiliency thereof, and while it is moving to expand the chamber, it produces a negative pressure for drawing fluid into the chamber. Cooperating latching elements are provided to maintain the diaphragm in the evacuated position without manual forces being applied thereto, the pump being unlatched to activate it when it is desired to start the drawing of fluid into the chamber.

United States Patent 9 Schachet et al.

[in 3,809,086 '[451 May 7,1974

[ WOUND DRAINAGE DEVICE [75] Inventors: Eli Schachet; Fritz Deuschle,both of [21] App]. No.: 206,307

[52] US. Cl. 128/278, 417/479 [51] Int. Cl A6lm 1/00 [58] Field ofSearch 128/276-278,

Primary Examiner-Charles F. Rosenbaum 57 ABSTRACT A portable, wounddrainage, suction pump for extracting body fluids from wounds has asubstantially rigid 1 vessel, a top plate carrying an actuator member,aresilient diaphragm disposed in the vessel and defining with the lowerportion of the vessel an expansible chamber, and an actuating plate onthe diaphragm adapted to be urged downwardly by an applied force on theactuator member to move the diaphragm downwardly and evacuate air fromthe expansible chamber. Upon removal of the applied force, the diaphragmtends to return to its original position due to theresiliency thereof,and while it is moving to expand the chamber, it produces a negativepressure for drawing fluid into the chamber. Cooperating latchingelements are provided to maintain the diaphragm in the evacuatedposition without manual forces being applied thereto, the pump beingunlatched to activate it when it is desired to start the drawing offluid into the v chamber.

23 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures ATENTEBIAY 7 1914 3,3 39' 5 sum 1 or 3PATENTEDFAY new 3,809,086

SHEET 2 UF 3 I 1 WOUND DRAINAGE DEVICE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Thisinvention relates to wound drainage devices, and more particularly, towound drainage devices of theportable, hand-operated type.

Some past drainage devices consisted of a container having pliable sidewalls and metal springs between top and bottom walls. In some cases, theside walls were resiliently flexible or made ofresiliently flexibleplastic in the form of bellows. Such containers were manually compressedto reduce the volume of the container.

With these constructions, the resiliency of the springs or bellows-likeside walls of the container urged the top and bottom walls away fromeach other to increase the container volume and cause the necessarysuction force.

In general, these past wound drainage devices had certain disadvantages.For example, the manual forces required to compress the springs orbellows were relatively great and had to be sustained while the drainagetube connection was made. Activation and connection of such devicesgenerally required the services of two people. In some cases, one personwould compress the suction device and then hand it to a second personfor connection. This was difficult and inconvenient because the devicehad to be maintained under manually applied compressive forces whilebeing transferred from one person to another. Also, it was generallynecessary to apply relatively even forces over a large area of thedevice in order to obtain adequate compression. This was somewhatdifficult because the walls tended to tilt unless care wastaken to applythe force near the center of the device or evenly over the sidesthereof. Obviously, the amount of suction obtained with a given suctiondevice of this type depended on the person applying the compressiveforces to that, in practice, the amount of suction generally varied witheach use even though the devices were identical in construction.

Another serious disadvantage to some suction devices of the above typewas that it was possible for the fluid drained into the device to beinadvertently pumped back into the wound area. For example, if thepatient turned over onto a filled device, the weight of his bodywouldcollapse or partially collapse the device thereby forcing fluidback into the wound. In order to avoid such backflow of fluid, somedevices have incorporated one-way valves, such as of the ball-type.There is, however, the danger that such valves will become clogged dueto the accumulation of fluids at the valve thereby causing the device tobecome inoperative. Also, because of the possible accumulation of fluidsat the valve, the valve may become inoperative in preventing fluidflow-back into the wound from the device.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the presentinvention to provide a wound. drainage device wherein the abovementioned disadvantages are substantially obviated.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an improvedwound drainage device which obviates the possibility of inadvertent flowof drainage fluid back into the wound from the device.

, Another object is to provide a novel, manually operated, wounddrainage device which is extremely convenient in use and which can bereadily placed in an operative condition by one person where desired.

Another object is to provide a wound drainage device which can bepackaged in a sterile condition, reliably connected in operation underaseptic conditions and which can be conveniently and economicallydisposed of after a single use. I

A further object is to provide a manually operated wound drainage devicehaving improved activating means, wherein the device can be maintainedin an operational condition, ready for use, without requiring continuousmanual forces being applied thereto.

Still another object is to provide an improved wound drainage devicewherein the actuation thereof is positive and is repeatable.

Yet another object is to provide a wound drainage device wherein themanual compressive forces required to activate the device are directedto substantially the optimum area of the device for simple manualactivation thereof.

In accordance with one form of the present invention, a wound drainagedevice is provided which ineludes an expansible chamber having a rigidside wall and a resiliently urged fluid displacement wall movable towardan oppositely facing wall to reduce the volume of the chamber, thedisplacement member being thereafter movable in a direction away fromthe facing wall for creating a suction force for drawing fluid into thechamber. In accordance with another aspect of theinvention, a manuallyoperable locking device is arranged to hold a chamber of a wounddrainage device in a compressed or evacuated condition, the lockingdevice being releasable to permit expansion of the chamber when desired.

These as well as other features and advantages of the present inventionwill become apparent from the following detailed description andaccompanying drawmgs.

, BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front view of a portionof a human body having a wound drainage device in accordance with thepresent invention attached from a wound;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged exploded the drainage device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged elevational view of the wound thereto for drainingfluid perspective view of drainage device of FIG. I;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged top plan view of the drainage device of FIG. 1; gFIG. Sis a cross-sectional view of the drainage device taken along theline 5-5 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 5a is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of a peripheralportionshown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line 6-6 of FIG. 4 but withthe handle of the device in a raised position;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 6 but with the device in acooked position;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken. along line 8-8 of FIG. 7; and b FIG. 9is a sectional view similar to FIG. 7 but with the device in anoperating condition.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to the drawings,and particularly to FIG. 1, there is shown a wound drainage device orsuction pump attached to a human body 12 by strap or belt 13, andoperatively connected to the interior of a wound 14 by one or moreflexible drainage or evacuating tubes, such as a tube 16. Where desired,tube 16 may be connected in fluid communication with the interior of thewound, for example, by a t or y tube connector such as indicated at 15,and a pair of tube sections 16a and 16b connected between the connectorand the wound.

With particular reference to FIGS. 2, 3, 4, 5 and 5a, the suction device10 is shown including a vessel 18, a fluid displacement or piston member20 illustrated as including a piston element shown as a diaphragm orgland member 22 and an actuating or backing plate 24, a cover or topplate member 26, and an actuator member 28.

Vessel 18 includes a bottom wall 30, a relatively rigid ornoncollapsible peripheral side wall 32 shown integral with bottom wall30, an inlet port or passage 33, a tube connector 34 connected atpassage 33 to the side wall 32 adjacent the bottom wall, such as bycement or a weld, and ar'i-outlet or drain port 35 in the side wallhaving a drain passage member 36 connected therewith, such as by cementor a weld, and an enclosure cap or sealing plug 37 shown integrallyconnected with member 36. A pair of likebelt loops 38 (both shown inFIG. 8) are provided for receiving the belt 13 shown in FIG. 1. Acontinuously extending peripheral groove 39 is provided in the upperedge of the vessel at the top of side wall 32 to receive a peripheralbead 40 on the diaphragm 22, as is more clearly seen in FIG. 5a. Thegroove 39 is shown formed by a peripheral rim 41 which is L-shaped incross-section, and the upper edge portion 45 of the side wall 32, thebottom horizontal portion of the L-shaped rim 41 being shown formedintegrally connected to the outside of the side wall 32 below the upperedge thereof. The entire vessel 18 is preferably formed of a rigidmaterial such as a relatively hard plastic.

The diaphragm 22 is shown formed of a relatively highly flexible andresilient, relatively thin elastic sheet material, such as stretchablerubber or the like. The diaphragm 22 in its relaxed orunstretchedcondition has a configuration generally complementary to the open end ofthe vessel 18 and serves as-a membrane closing the vessel. With the bead40 disposed in the groove 39, as seen in FIG. 5, the diaphragm 22 is influid tight sealed engagment with the side wall 32 and the upper end ofvessel 18 is closed by the diaphragm. The diaphragm 22 forms an upperwall which defines with bottom wall 30 and side wall 32 of vessel 18, avariable volume or expansible fluid pressure chamber orcontainerindicated at 42.

The actuating plate 24 is disposed between the cover member 26 anddiaphragm 22 in limited, free-floating relation with the diaphragm, theplate 24 resting upon the upper surface of the diaphragm and beingslidable a limited amount relative thereto. Plate 24 is complementary inshape to the diaphragm 22, and has a slightly smaller area or peripherythan the open upper end of the vessel 18 so that the plate 24 is movablewithin the vessel between or within side walls 32, as will be explainedmore fully hereinafter. Plate 24 is pro vided with two spaced, similarrecesses 43 and 44 respectively provided with keyways or laterallyextending slots 46 and 47 for receiving portions of actuator 28, as

tively rigid material and may be, for example, of a relatively hardplastic material. Plate 24 is shown having a plurality of integralstrengthening ribs indicated in phantom at 48 in FIG. 2.

The cover member 26 includes an upper plate 49 having a peripheraldepending side wall 50 integral with the plate. In the illustratedembodiment, the side wall 50 fits within the rim 41 with the lower edgeof the side wall 50 engaging the upper side of the bead 40 of diaphragm22, as seen in FIGS. 5 and 5a. The cover member 26 is connected to therim 41 by any suitable means, for example, by welding, such as solventwelding, at the junction of the outer periphery of top plate 49 and theupper edge of rim 41, as indicated at 51 in FIG. 5a. The cover member26. provides an effectively rigid, nonbending, surface whichsubstantially closes the entire open end of the vessel 18. The cover isprovided with a generally U-shaped recess 53 which is adapted to receivethe actuator 28 (FIG. 4). Adjacent the ends of the legs of the U-shapedrecess 53 are provided a pair of similar openings 55 and 56 which are inregistration with recesses 43 and 44 in the actuating plate 24, as moreclearly seen in FIG. 2. Openings 55 and 56 are respectively providedwith oppositely extending lateral slots 58 and 59 which are respectivelyin registration with slots 46 and 47 of recesses 43 and 44 in plate 24.Cover member 26 is shown having a plurality of strengthening ribs orbeams shown in phantom at 60 in FIG. 2 which extend both laterally andlongitudinally adjacent the underside of the cover. The ribs 60 may beattached to the cover by cement or may be formed integrally therewith.The cover member 26 is formed of a relatively rigid material, forexample, a relatively hard plastic. Cover member 26 is also providedwith a pair of abutments or catches 62 and 63 for actuator 28 whichextend vertically from the underside of the top plate adjacent theopenings 55 and 56. In the illustrated embodiment, the catches 62 and 63are shown as portions of one of the ribs 60. i

The actuator 28 is in the form of a generally U- shaped manuallyoperated actuator handle. The actuator is provided with a pair of spacedvertical legs 65 and 66 and an upper horizontal connecting member 67.The legs 65 and 66 are respectively provided with latches defined byhorizontally extending ledges or abutments 70 and 71 which are adaptedto respectively engage catches 62 and 63 on the cover member 26. Thelegs 65 and 66 have connected to the ends thereof abutment members 73and 74 respectively. The abutment members 73 and 74 are shown ascylindrical members integrally'connected to their respective legs. Theseabutment members have oppositely extending keys 77 and 78 respectivelydisposed at the ends thereof. In FIG. 3, 4 and 5, the actuator 28 isdisposed in its recess 53 in the cover member 26.

As seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, one outer side of the vessel is shown providedwith graduation marks to indicate the quantity of fluid in the device atany given time, the vessel being preferably formed of a transparentmaterial, such as transparent plastic.

The drainage device 10 is readily assembled. The diaphragm 20 may beplaced into the vessel 18 with the diaphragm bead 40 entering theperipheral groove 39 and. preferably being forced into the groove intight .frictional engagement therewith. The actuating plate 24 is placedon top of the diaphragm 22 and then the cover member 26 is placed suchthat the lower edge of sidewall 50 enters the groove 39 in the vesseland engages the upper surface of the bead 40 of diaphragm 22 to maintainthe bead in place in the groove and further ensure sealed engagementbetween the diaphragm and side walls 32. A suitable lubricant, such asof the silicone type, is preferably applied to the top surface ofdiaphragm 22 during assembly to ensure that the plate 24 will readilyslide relative to the diaphragm 22. The cover member 26 may then besecured to the upper edge of the vessel rim 41 by solvent welding aspreviously mentioned herein. The actuator handle 28 is then insertedinto the cover 26 by manually moving the two legs 65 and 66 verticallyintov openings 55 and 56 and i with the keys 77 and 78 entering theirrespective slots 58 and 59 adjacent these openings. Once the keys 77 and78 aremoved downwardly past the cover slots 58 and 59, the actuatorhandle can be pivoted to its horizontal or storedposition shown in FIGS.3, 4 and 5. In this position ofthe actuator handle 28, the plane of thekeys 77 and 78 are horizontal and cannot inadvertently pass through theslots 58 and 59 in the cover 26. The

cover26 is also shown having a pair of abutment members 80 and 81 (FIG.4) in the recess 53 which are frictionally engaged by the handle tomaintain the handle positioned in the recess 53 substantially horizontalor parallel to the plane of the cover 26. The cover 26 is shown in FIGS.2 and 5a provided with a peripheral recess 83 which receives a pluralityof resilient tabs or inwardly extending protrusions 85 so that the cover26 may be mechanicallyheld in place'prior to the forming of the weld 51.

The drainage device is shown in FIGS. 3-5 in its assembled conditionwith the manual actuator 28 in the stored horizontal position in theU-shaped recess 53,

and with the diaphragm 22 in its normallysubstantially relaxed oruntensioned condition, the drainage device being in its normallyunactuatedorinactive condition. In the normally inactive condition ofthe device 10, the diaphragm 22 is resiliently urged away from thebottom wall 30 by the inherent resiliency thereof to a position in whichit is spaced a maximum amount from wall 30- so that chamber 42 is in anexpanded condition and has a maximum volume. This is the preferredcondition for packaging, shipping, and storing the drainage device. Inutilizing the wound drainage device 10, the actuator handle 28 may bemanually lifted from the recess 53 in the cover member 26 so that thehandle is raised to the vertical position as shown in FIG. 6. Whenhandle 28 is in the vertical position normal to the plane of cover 26,the keys 77 and 78 are in position to enter the slots 46 and 47 (FIGS. 2and 8) in the actuating plate 24 so that the handle moves verticallydownwardly a small distance with the abutment members 73 and 74 enteringthe recesses 43 and 44 in the plate 24.

Actuator handle 28 is moved vertically downwardly by applying a downwardmanual force thereto such as by grasping the horizontal handle member 67by hand and urging it downwardly. This applied manual force istransmitted by the handle abutments 73 and 74 to the plate 24 of thefluid displacement member to move the plate 24 which, in turn, movesdiaphragm 22 downwardly. During the downward movement of the handle 28and actuating plate 24, the diaphragm 22, which serves as an uppermovable wall of the container or chamber 42, stretches and movesdownwardly towards the bottom wall 30of the vessel to compressexpansible container or chamber 42 and evacuate fluid, in this case air,therefrom. Air is expelled through either or both of the vessel ports 33or 35 as desired. When the central portion of the diaphragm 22 is at ornear the bottom wall 30, the handle 28 is movedslightly forward so thatthe lands and 71 move under the catches 62 and 63 respectively, wherebythe handle is latched in the downward position, the condition indicatedin FIGS. 7 and 8. In this condition the fluid displacement member 20 andhandle 28 aremaintained in latched or locked position opposing theresilient force of the stretched diaphragm 22. Under these conditionsthe manually applied force can be removed from the-handle 28 and thedevice 10 moved orhanded to another person while the. device remainslocked in its actuated or cocked position with the volume of the chamberat a minimum and the device ready for use.

The closure 37 is then inserted into the drain member 36 and thedrainage tube 16, which may have been previously inserted into thepatients body in a suitable or conventional manner, is sealablyconnected to the connector 34, such as by a sliding frictional slip fit.Under these conditions the device 10 can be unlocked or tripped from itscocked conditionto its activated or operating condition by unlatchinghandle 28. This is simply accomplished by moving the handle 28 slightlyto the left from the position shown in FIG. 7 until the lands 70 and 71move out of engagement with catches 62 and 63. Since the handle 28 ismovable relative to the actuating plate 24, it can be raised and thenpivoted towards the cover 26 and into recess 53. The drainage device 10is seen in FIGS. 1 and 9 in its activated or opwords, the inherentresiliency of the stretched diaphragm 22 creates a partial vacuum ornegative pressure in the chamber 42 and fluid is drawn in as theexpansible chamber expands or increases in volume due to the movement offluid displacement member 20 in a direction away from bottom wall 30.

With the drainage device 10 activated as described above and connectedby belt 13. to a human body as in dicated in FIG. I, wound drainage willflow into the vessel 32 until the diaphragm is returned to its normallysubstantially unstretched condition, such as indicated in FIG. 5. Afterthe chamber 42 is filled, the device 10 may be readily removed andsuitably discarded. Alternatively, after the device 10 is filled, it maybe drained, for example, by removing plug 37 from drain member 36, foruse again with the same patient.

The actuating plate 24, as shown in the drawings, has a relatively largearea and a continuous outer peripheral portion which engages thediaphragm 22 closely adjacent the outer periphery of the diaphragm andentirely around the vessel 18 so that the plate 24 tends to distributethe actuating force applied to it evenly around the diaphragm. In thisway, the diaphragm is substantially evenly stretched as the actuatingplate moves toward the bottom wall 30.

The keys 77 and 78 on the'actuator handle 28 tend to maintain the handlein a vertical position and this facilitates the application of theactuating force to the handle. Where desired, the keys 77 and 78 may beformed to have slightly different shapes or lengths and with the coverslots 58 and 59 respectively conforming to them, so that the actuator 28can only be inserted into the cover 26 in its properly oriented positionwith the lands 70 and 71 located to engage the catches 62 and 63 whenthe device is cocked.

Because the handle 28 can be latched with the device 10 in its actuatedor cocked position shown in FIG. 7, the handling of the device l isgreatly facilitated. Since the device can be maintained in a cockedposition without manually applied forces on handle 28, the connection ofthe device to the body and the connection of the drainage tube 16 to thecocked device can be made easily and without haste. With theconstruction described herein, the device 10, once it is connected tothe body and tripped or activated by unlatching handle 28 and returningit to its recess 53 in cover 26, cannot be reactuated or compressed toinadvertently return fluid accumulated in the chamber 42 to the body.This is because the side walls 32 are formed of relatively rigid andnon-compressive material such as a hard plastic. Thus, even where thepatient carrying the device 10 places his weight on the device, itcannot return wound drainage fluid back into the wound.

Because the device has a predetermined latching position, that is, whenhandle 28 is latched in place against the catches 62 and 63, such asindicated in FIG. 7, the actuating plate 24 and diaphragm 22 will alwaysbe in a predetermined location regardless of the person applying theactuating force or the manner in which it is applied. In this way, thepartial vacuum or negative pressure created by the expansion of chamber42 as a result of the resilient force of diaphragm 20, will be the samefor any given design.

Vessel 18, actuating plate 24 and cover 26, in the preferred embodimentare formed of a relatively hard and effectively rigid plastic so thatthey are effectively non-flexible and this further ensures against anyinadvertent compression of the device that would return fluid from thedevice to the body. Device 10 may be shipped and stored in a sterilepackaged condition ready for useL Because it can be formed of economicalmaterials, such as plastic materials, the device 10 can be economicallydisposed of after a single use.

From the foregoing it will also be apparent that there has been provideda portable wound drainage device which is convenient to use and which isportable and efficient in operation. Also, it will be apparent thatdevice 10 is economical and reliable in operation and may beused inaseptic conditions, and wherein its operating characteristics arerepeatable, that is, the same amount of negative pressure of partialvacuum is obtained regardless of the person operating the device andthis ensures a predetermined negative fluid pressure is obtained in use.

While there is shown and described a preferred form of the inventionherein it will be understood by those skilled in the art that variouschanges and modifications thereto may be made without departing from thetrue spirit of the invention, the scope of the invention being definedonly by the appended claims.

I claim:

l. A portable, manually operable body wound suction drainage devicecomprising a vessel having a bottom wall, and a peripheral side wallconnected thereto,

a plate member connected to said side wall, resiliently urged fluiddisplacement means including an elastic movable in response to anapplied force thereon for stretching and moving said diaphragm towardsaid bottom wall to a position wherein the volume of said chamber isrelatively small, actuator means on said plate member responsive to aforce manually applied thereto for applying a force on said actuatingmember for moving said actuating member and said diaphragm toward saidbottom wall, tube connector means connected in continuous fluidcommunication with said chamber during the drainage operation of thedevice, and a body fluid drainage tube having one end connectable insealed fluid communication with said tube connector means and the otherend insertable in a body wound for transferring drainage fluid from thewound to said chamber in response to negative pressure in said chamberdue to movement of said fluid displacement means away from said bottomwall, said side wall being substantially rigid in a direction parallelto the direction of movement of said fluid displacement means preventingan inadvertentcompressive force applied to said side wall from efiectingmovement of said fluid displacement means toward said bottom wall anddrainage fluid flow back to the body wound.

2. The device according to claim 1 wherein the periphery of saiddiaphragm member is clamped between peripheral portions of said platemember and said side wall.

' 3. The device according to claim 1 wherein said plate member has anopening therethrough, said actuator means is movable in said opening andengageable with said actuating member for moving the same in a directiontoward said bottom wall, said actuating member engaging said diaphragmclosely adjacent the outer periphery of said diaphragm to substantiallyevenly distribute said applied force thereto.

4. A portable, manually operable body wound drainage device comprising avessel having a bottom wall, and a substantially rigid peripheral sidewall connected thereto, resiliently urged fluid displacement meanscomprising a flexible resilient diaphragm member in the form of anelastic sheet member sealingly connected with said wall in normallyspaced relation with said bottom wall, said diaphragm member beingresiliently urged in a direction away from said bottom wall and movablewithin said peripheral side wall toward and away from said bottom wallto define a variable volume fluid pressure chamber therebetween, a platemember connected to said side wall and having an opening therethrough,said fluid displacement means including an actuating member disposedbetween said plate member and said diaphragm member and engaging saiddiaphragm member closely adjacent the outer periphery of said diaphragmmember to substantially evenly distribute an applied force thereto, saidactuating member being movable in response to an applied force thereonfor stretching and moving said diaphragm member toward said bottom wall,actuator means on said plate member movable. in said opening andengageable with said actuating member for moving said actuating memberand saiddiaphragm member in ,a direction toward said bottom wall inresponse to a force manually, applied to said actuator means, andreleasable lockingmeans for holding said actuator means in apredetermined position in which said actuator means has movedsaidactuating member to a location innwhich said volume of said chamberis at a predetermined minimum, and passage means enabling the inter-,ior of said chamber to be connected in fluid communication withabodywound.

5. Thedevice according to claim 4 wherein said locking means includesabutment means on said plate member, and abutment means on said actuatormeans engageable with said first named abutment means for holding saidactuator means in said predetermined position.

6. Thedevice according to claim 5 wherein said plate member, saidactuating member, and said actuator -means are effectively rigid.

7.,The device according to claim 5 wherein said actuator means ismovable relative to said actuating member and comprises a generallyU-shaped element pivotally movable froma position substantially parallelto the plane of said plate member to a position generally normal to the,plane of said plate member and said actuating frnember. l

8. A portable, manually operable body wound drainage device comprisingavessel having a bottom wall, and a substantially rigid peripheral sidewall connected thereto, aneffectively rigid'plate member connected toagainst the resiliency thereoftoward said bottom wall,

releasable latching means for maintaining said device in a cockedcondition when said fluid displacement means is in a position in whichthe volume of said chamber is at a predetermined relatively small value,said latching means including first abutment means on said plate memberand second abutment meanson said actuator means engageable with saidfirst abutment ,means when said fluid displacement means is in saidposition, and passage means enabling the interior of said chamber to beconnected in fluid communication with a body wound.

9. The device according to claim 8 wherein said actuator means comprisesan effectively rigid elongated member pivotally connected to said platemember and movable to a position in which its lengthwise axis issubstantially parallel with the plane of said plate member.

10. The device according to claim 8 wherein said actuator meanscomprises an elastic sheet member with the periphery thereof connectedin sealing engagement with said side wall, and an effectively rigidforce transmitting member disposed between said plate member and engagedwith said sheet member and movable relative thereto to stretch saidsheet member and move the same toward said bottom wall in response tothe application of a predetermined force on said force transmittingmember.

II. The device according to claim 10 further including a lubricantdisposed between the engaging surfaces of said sheet means and saidforce transmitting member to facilitate relative movement thereof.

12. A portable, manually operable, wound suction drainage devicecomprising a fluid pressure chamber including a peripheral side wall,and a pair of oppositely disposed walls, at least one of said pair ofwalls being movable toward and away from theother wall of said pair tovary the volume of said chamber, said one wall being resiliently urgedtoward a first position spaced from said other wall wherein said chamberhas a predetermined maximum volume, a plate member connected in fixedspaced relation from said other wall,

actuator means for moving said one wall in a direction after removal ofsaid applied force, said releasable locking means including firstabutment means on said plate member, and second abutment means on saidactuator means, said actuator means being movable to effect engagementbetween said first and second abutment meansafter said actuator meansmoves said one wall to said secondposition to thereby prevent movementof said one wall from said second position, said actuator means beingmanually movable to effect disengagement of said first and secondabutment means to permit movement of said one wall toward said secondposition, and passage means in operative connection with said chamberenabliing operative connection of said chamber with a wound.

13. The device according to claim 12 wherein said plate member has anopening therethrough, said actuator means includes an elongated membermovable in said opening with its lengthwise axis perpendicular to theplane of said plate member,said elongated member is pivotal into astored position in which said axis is substantially parallel with theplane of said plate member, said second abutment means is disposed onsaid elongated member.

14. The device according to claim 13 further includmember is in saidactuation plate recess and said axis is perpendicular to the plane ofsaid plate member, and

said plate member has a recess for receiving said actuator means when insaid stored position.

16. A portable, manually operable, wound suction drainage devicecomprising a fluid pressure chamber including a peripheral side wall,and a pair of oppositely disposed wall members, at least one of saidpair of wall members being movable toward and away from the other wallmember of said pair to vary the volume of said chamber, said one wallbeing resiliently urged toward a first position spaced from said otherwall wherein said chamber has a predetermined maximum volume, said onewall member being movable in a direction toward said other wall memberin response to an applied force thereon to a second position whereinsaid chamber has a relatively small volume, tube connector meansconnected in fluid communication with the interior of said container,drainage tube means having one end connectable in fluid communicationwith said tube connector means and the opposite end thereof adapted tobe disposed in a wound to be drained of body fluid, and releasablelocking means actuatable into holding engagement with said one wallmember for holding said one wall member in said second position withoutrequiring a manual force thereon to permit fluid communicationconnection of said drainage tube means with said tube connector meansand insertion of said drainage tube means in the wound while said onewall member is held in said second position by said locking means, andactuatable out of holding engagement to release said one member topermit movement of said one wall member away from said other wall memberto expand said chamber and produce a negative pressure therein fordrawing body fluid through said drainage tube means from the wound tosaid chamber.

17. The device according to claim :16 wherein said one wall memberincludes an elastic sheet member.

18. The device according to claim 17 further including a substantiallyrigid cover plate member substantially closing the upper end of saidperipheral side wall, and wherein said one wall member further includesa substantially rigid actuating plate on said sheet member between saidplate member and said sheet member, and wherein said locking meansincludes actuator means engaged between said cover plate member and saidactuating plate when said locking means is actuated to hold said onewall member in said second position.

1,9. In combination with a portable wound suction pump for connectionwith a body wound for draining body fluid therefrom including acollapsible container adapted to be collapsed by a manual force appliedthereto to reduce the internal volume thereof including means forexpanding the volume thereof from a collapsed condition to produce anegative pressure for drawing body fluid into the container, theimprovement comprising tube connector means connected in fluidcommunication with the interior of said container, body fluid drainagetube means having one end connectable in fluid communication with saidtube connector and the opposite end thereof insertable in a wound to bedrained of body fluid, and manually operable means for selectivelylocking said container in a substantially collapsed condition and formaintaining it in a collapsed condition without requiring a manual forcethereon to permit fluid communication connection of said drainage tubemeans with said tube connector means and insertion of said drainage tubemeans in the wound while said container is held locked in asubstantially collapsed condition by said locking means, and

for unlocking said container to permit expansion thereof to produce anegative pressure therein to draw 12 body fluid through said drainagetube means from the wound to said container.

20. A portable, manually operable body wound drainage device comprisinga vessel having a bottom wall, and a substantially rigid peripheral sidewall connected thereto, resiliently urged fluid displacement meansmovable within said peripheral side wall toward and away from saidbottom wall to define a variable volume fluid pressure chambertherebetween, passage means enabling the interior of said chamber to beconnected in fluid communication with a body wound, and releasablelocking means for selectively holding said resiliently urged fluiddisplacement means in a position in which the volume of said chamber isreduced and for releasing said resiliently urged fluid displacementmeans from said position for increasing the volume of said chamber.

21. The device according to claim 20 wherein said locking means includesengagement means engageable with said resiliently urged fluiddisplacement means for selectively applying a restraining force on saidresiliently urged fluid displacement means to maintain the same in aposition in which the volume of said chamber is reduced withoutrequiring the application of a manually applied force on saidresiliently urged fluid displacement means, and releasing saidengagement means to remove said restraining force and permit movement ofsaid resiliently urged displacement means to increase the volume of saidchamber and produce a negative pressure in said chamber for drawingfluid into said chamber from the body wound.

22. A portable, manually operable body wound suction drainage devicecomprising a variable volume fluid pressure chamber including aneffectively rigid peripheral side wall, and a pair of oppositelydisposed walls connected to the said peripheral side wall, at least oneof said pair of walls being movable relative to the other wall of saidpair and normally resiliently urged toward a position spaced therefrom,said one wall being movable toward said other wall in response to anapplied force thereon to expel fluid from said chamber and reduce thevolume thereof, passage means for operatively connecting said chamber toa body wound so that upon movement of said one wall toward said spacedposition to increase the volume of said chamber a negative pressure isdeveloped in said chamber for drawing body fluid into said chamber fromthe wound, and releasable locking means for selectively holding said onewall in a position wherein a volume of said chamber is reduced afterremoval of the applied force and for releasing said one wall to increasethe volume of said chamber.

23. A portable, manually operable body wound suction drainage devicecomprising a vessel having a bottom wall, and a peripheral side wallconnected thereto, a substantially rigid plate member connected to saidside wall in fixed spaced relation with said bottom wall and extendinggenerally parallel to said bottom wall, resiliently urgedfluiddisplacement means including an elastic sheet diaphragm sealinglyconnected to said side wall between said plate member and said bottomwall and movable within said side wall toward and away from said bottomwall to define a variable volume fluid pressure chamber between saiddiaphragm and said bottom wall, said diaphragm being normallyresiliently urged toward a position spaced from said bottom wall withsaid chamber having a relatively large volume, said fluid displacementmeans including an actuating and the other end insergable in a bodywound for transferring drainage fluid from the wound to said chamber inresponse to negative pressure in said chamber due to movement of saiddiaphragm away from said bottom wall, said side wall being substantiallyrigid in a direction parallel to the direction of movement of saiddiaphragm preventing an inadvertent compressive force applied to saidside wall from effecting movement of said diaphragm toward said bottomwall and drainage fluid flow back to the body wound.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No.3,809,086 Dated Ma 7, 1974 3 Inventor(s) Fritz Deuschl and E11 SchachtIt is certified that error appears i n the abbv-id entif-i edpatent" andthat said Letters Patent are hereby corr ected as showh' below:

IN THE CLAIMS: 1 i

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At testingyOfficer f Com m issio n er "oi-Patents y

1. A portable, manually operable body wound suction drainage devicecomprising a vessel having a bottom wall, and a peripheral side wallconnected thereto, a plate member connected to said side wall,resiliently urged fluid displacement means including an elastic sheetdiaphragm sealingly connected to said side wall and movable within saidside wall toward and away from said bottom wall to define a variablevolume fluid pressure chamber therebetween, said fluid displacementmeans being normally resiliently urged toward a position spaced fromsaid bottom wall with said chamber having a relatively large volume,said fluid displacement means including an actuating member disposedbetween said plate member and said diaphragm and movable in response toan applied force thereon for stretching and moving said diaphragm towardsaid bottom wall to a position wherein the volume of said chamber isrelatively small, actuator means on said plate member responsive to aforce manually applied thereto for applying a force on said actuatingmember for moving said actuating member and said diaphragm toward saidbottom wall, tube connector means connected in continuous fluidcommunication with said chamber during the drainage operation of thedevice, and a body fluid drainage tube having one end connectable insealed fluid communication with said tube connector means and the otherend insertable in a body wound for transferring drainage fluid from thewound to said chamber in response to negative pressure in said chamberdue to movement of said fluid displacement means away from said bottomwall, said side wall being substantially rigid in a direction parallelto the direction of movement of said fluid displacement means preventingan inadvertent compressive force applied to said side wall fromeffecting movement of said fluid displacement means toward said bottomwall and drainage fluid flow back to the body wound.
 2. The deviceaccording to claim 1 wherein the periphery of said diaphragm member isclamped between peripheral portions of said plate member and said sidewall.
 3. The device according to claim 1 wherein said plate member hasan opening therethrough, said actuator means is movable in said openingand engageable with said actuating member for moving the same in adirection toward said bottom wall, said actuating member engaging saiddiaphragm closely adjacent the outer periphery of said diaphragm tosubstantially evenly distribute said applied force thereto.
 4. Aportable, manually operable body wound drainage device comprising avessel having a bottom wall, and a substantially rigid peripheral sidewall connected thereto, resiliently urged fluid displacement meanscomprising a flexIble resilient diaphragm member in the form of anelastic sheet member sealingly connected with said wall in normallyspaced relation with said bottom wall, said diaphragm member beingresiliently urged in a direction away from said bottom wall and movablewithin said peripheral side wall toward and away from said bottom wallto define a variable volume fluid pressure chamber therebetween, a platemember connected to said side wall and having an opening therethrough,said fluid displacement means including an actuating member disposedbetween said plate member and said diaphragm member and engaging saiddiaphragm member closely adjacent the outer periphery of said diaphragmmember to substantially evenly distribute an applied force thereto, saidactuating member being movable in response to an applied force thereonfor stretching and moving said diaphragm member toward said bottom wall,actuator means on said plate member movable in said opening andengageable with said actuating member for moving said actuating memberand said diaphragm member in a direction toward said bottom wall inresponse to a force manually applied to said actuator means, andreleasable locking means for holding said actuator means in apredetermined position in which said actuator means has moved saidactuating member to a location in which said volume of said chamber isat a predetermined minimum, and passage means enabling the interior ofsaid chamber to be connected in fluid communication with a body wound.5. The device according to claim 4 wherein said locking means includesabutment means on said plate member, and abutment means on said actuatormeans engageable with said first named abutment means for holding saidactuator means in said predetermined position.
 6. The device accordingto claim 5 wherein said plate member, said actuating member, and saidactuator means are effectively rigid.
 7. The device according to claim 5wherein said actuator means is movable relative to said actuating memberand comprises a generally U-shaped element pivotally movable from aposition substantially parallel to the plane of said plate member to aposition generally normal to the plane of said plate member and saidactuating member.
 8. A portable, manually operable body wound drainagedevice comprising a vessel having a bottom wall, and a substantiallyrigid peripheral side wall connected thereto, an effectively rigid platemember connected to said side wall and having an opening therethrough,resiliently urged fluid displacement means disposed between said platemember and said bottom wall and movable within said peripheral side walltoward and away from said bottom wall to define a variable volume fluidchamber therebetween, effectively rigid movable actuator meansassociated with said plate member and responsive to a manually appliedforce thereon for moving said fluid displacement means, said actuatormeans including a portion thereon reciprocal in said opening andengageable with said fluid displacement means for moving said fluiddisplacement means against the resiliency thereof toward said bottomwall, releasable latching means for maintaining said device in a cockedcondition when said fluid displacement means is in a position in whichthe volume of said chamber is at a predetermined relatively small value,said latching means including first abutment means on said plate memberand second abutment means on said actuator means engageable with saidfirst abutment means when said fluid displacement means is in saidposition, and passage means enabling the interior of said chamber to beconnected in fluid communication with a body wound.
 9. The deviceaccording to claim 8 wherein said actuator means comprises aneffectively rigid elongated member pivotally connected to said platemember and movable to a position in which its lengthwise axis issubstantially parallel with the plane of said plate member.
 10. Thedevice according to claim 8 wherein said actuator means comprises anelastic sheet member with the periphery thereof connected in sealingengagement with said side wall, and an effectively rigid forcetransmitting member disposed between said plate member and engaged withsaid sheet member and movable relative thereto to stretch said sheetmember and move the same toward said bottom wall in response to theapplication of a predetermined force on said force transmitting member.11. The device according to claim 10 further including a lubricantdisposed between the engaging surfaces of said sheet means and saidforce transmitting member to facilitate relative movement thereof.
 12. Aportable, manually operable, wound suction drainage device comprising afluid pressure chamber including a peripheral side wall, and a pair ofoppositely disposed walls, at least one of said pair of walls beingmovable toward and away from the other wall of said pair to vary thevolume of said chamber, said one wall being resiliently urged toward afirst position spaced from said other wall wherein said chamber has apredetermined maximum volume, a plate member connected in fixed spacedrelation from said other wall, actuator means for moving said one wallin a direction toward said other wall in response to an applied forcethereon to a second position wherein said chamber has a predeterminedminimum volume, releasable locking means for holding said one wall insaid second position after removal of said applied force, saidreleasable locking means including first abutment means on said platemember, and second abutment means on said actuator means, said actuatormeans being movable to effect engagement between said first and secondabutment means after said actuator means moves said one wall to saidsecond position to thereby prevent movement of said one wall from saidsecond position, said actuator means being manually movable to effectdisengagement of said first and second abutment means to permit movementof said one wall toward said second position, and passage means inoperative connection with said chamber enabliing operative connection ofsaid chamber with a wound.
 13. The device according to claim 12 whereinsaid plate member has an opening therethrough, said actuator meansincludes an elongated member movable in said opening with its lengthwiseaxis perpendicular to the plane of said plate member, said elongatedmember is pivotal into a stored position in which said axis issubstantially parallel with the plane of said plate member, said secondabutment means is disposed on said elongated member.
 14. The deviceaccording to claim 13 further including an actuating plate disposedbetween said actuator means and said one wall and for engagement by saidelongated member for moving said one wall toward said second position,said actuating plate having a recess therein for receiving an endportion of said elongated member.
 15. The device according to claim 14wherein said actuating plate has and said elongated member havecooperating engagement means preventing pivotal movement of saidactuator means when said elongated member is in said actuation platerecess and said axis is perpendicular to the plane of said plate member,and said plate member has a recess for receiving said actuator meanswhen in said stored position.
 16. A portable, manually operable, woundsuction drainage device comprising a fluid pressure chamber including aperipheral side wall, and a pair of oppositely disposed wall members, atleast one of said pair of wall members being movable toward and awayfrom the other wall member of said pair to vary the volume of saidchamber, said one wall being resiliently urged toward a first positionspaced from said other wall wherein said chamber has a predeterminedmaximum volume, said one wall member being movable in a direction towardsaid other wall member in response to an applied force thereon to asecond position wherein said chamber has a relatively small volume, tubeconnector means connected in fluid communication with the interior ofsaid container, Drainage tube means having one end connectable in fluidcommunication with said tube connector means and the opposite endthereof adapted to be disposed in a wound to be drained of body fluid,and releasable locking means actuatable into holding engagement withsaid one wall member for holding said one wall member in said secondposition without requiring a manual force thereon to permit fluidcommunication connection of said drainage tube means with said tubeconnector means and insertion of said drainage tube means in the woundwhile said one wall member is held in said second position by saidlocking means, and actuatable out of holding engagement to release saidone member to permit movement of said one wall member away from saidother wall member to expand said chamber and produce a negative pressuretherein for drawing body fluid through said drainage tube means from thewound to said chamber.
 17. The device according to claim 16 wherein saidone wall member includes an elastic sheet member.
 18. The deviceaccording to claim 17 further including a substantially rigid coverplate member substantially closing the upper end of said peripheral sidewall, and wherein said one wall member further includes a substantiallyrigid actuating plate on said sheet member between said plate member andsaid sheet member, and wherein said locking means includes actuatormeans engaged between said cover plate member and said actuating platewhen said locking means is actuated to hold said one wall member in saidsecond position.
 19. In combination with a portable wound suction pumpfor connection with a body wound for draining body fluid therefromincluding a collapsible container adapted to be collapsed by a manualforce applied thereto to reduce the internal volume thereof includingmeans for expanding the volume thereof from a collapsed condition toproduce a negative pressure for drawing body fluid into the container,the improvement comprising tube connector means connected in fluidcommunication with the interior of said container, body fluid drainagetube means having one end connectable in fluid communication with saidtube connector and the opposite end thereof insertable in a wound to bedrained of body fluid, and manually operable means for selectivelylocking said container in a substantially collapsed condition and formaintaining it in a collapsed condition without requiring a manual forcethereon to permit fluid communication connection of said drainage tubemeans with said tube connector means and insertion of said drainage tubemeans in the wound while said container is held locked in asubstantially collapsed condition by said locking means, and forunlocking said container to permit expansion thereof to produce anegative pressure therein to draw body fluid through said drainage tubemeans from the wound to said container.
 20. A portable, manuallyoperable body wound drainage device comprising a vessel having a bottomwall, and a substantially rigid peripheral side wall connected thereto,resiliently urged fluid displacement means movable within saidperipheral side wall toward and away from said bottom wall to define avariable volume fluid pressure chamber therebetween, passage meansenabling the interior of said chamber to be connected in fluidcommunication with a body wound, and releasable locking means forselectively holding said resiliently urged fluid displacement means in aposition in which the volume of said chamber is reduced and forreleasing said resiliently urged fluid displacement means from saidposition for increasing the volume of said chamber.
 21. The deviceaccording to claim 20 wherein said locking means includes engagementmeans engageable with said resiliently urged fluid displacement meansfor selectively applying a restraining force on said resiliently urgedfluid displacement means to maintain the same in a position in which thevolume of said chamber is reduced without requiring the application of amanually applied force on said Resiliently urged fluid displacementmeans, and releasing said engagement means to remove said restrainingforce and permit movement of said resiliently urged displacement meansto increase the volume of said chamber and produce a negative pressurein said chamber for drawing fluid into said chamber from the body wound.22. A portable, manually operable body wound suction drainage devicecomprising a variable volume fluid pressure chamber including aneffectively rigid peripheral side wall, and a pair of oppositelydisposed walls connected to the said peripheral side wall, at least oneof said pair of walls being movable relative to the other wall of saidpair and normally resiliently urged toward a position spaced therefrom,said one wall being movable toward said other wall in response to anapplied force thereon to expel fluid from said chamber and reduce thevolume thereof, passage means for operatively connecting said chamber toa body wound so that upon movement of said one wall toward said spacedposition to increase the volume of said chamber a negative pressure isdeveloped in said chamber for drawing body fluid into said chamber fromthe wound, and releasable locking means for selectively holding said onewall in a position wherein a volume of said chamber is reduced afterremoval of the applied force and for releasing said one wall to increasethe volume of said chamber.
 23. A portable, manually operable body woundsuction drainage device comprising a vessel having a bottom wall, and aperipheral side wall connected thereto, a substantially rigid platemember connected to said side wall in fixed spaced relation with saidbottom wall and extending generally parallel to said bottom wall,resiliently urged fluid displacement means including an elastic sheetdiaphragm sealingly connected to said side wall between said platemember and said bottom wall and movable within said side wall toward andaway from said bottom wall to define a variable volume fluid pressurechamber between said diaphragm and said bottom wall, said diaphragmbeing normally resiliently urged toward a position spaced from saidbottom wall with said chamber having a relatively large volume, saidfluid displacement means including an actuating member engageable withsaid diaphragm and movable in response to an applied force thereon tostretch and move said diaphragm toward said bottom wall to a positionwherein the volume of said chamber is relatively small, said platemember having an opening therethrough for applying said force on saidactuating member, tube connector means connected in continuous fluidcommunication with said chamber during the drainage operation of thedevice, and a body fluid drainage tube having one end connectable insealed fluid communication with said tube connector means and the otherend insergable in a body wound for transferring drainage fluid from thewound to said chamber in response to negative pressure in said chamberdue to movement of said diaphragm away from said bottom wall, said sidewall being substantially rigid in a direction parallel to the directionof movement of said diaphragm preventing an inadvertent compressiveforce applied to said side wall from effecting movement of saiddiaphragm toward said bottom wall and drainage fluid flow back to thebody wound.